Zero Minus Ten (James Bond 007) - Hardcover

Benson, Raymond

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0340684488 ISBN 13: 9780340684481

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton, 1997

Synopsis

A new era of intrigue and danger begins for James Bond, and this time his formidable adversaries include a corrupt Chinese general and a power-crazed tycoon. It's June 1997 and M despatches 007 to Hong Kong to investigate a series of unexplained bombings.

About this title

Review:

The Bahamas, Hong Kong, China, Australia--James Bond visits all of these places in Zero Minus Ten, conquering women en route. Set 10 days before Hong Kong is handed back to the Chinese, Bond is faced with a number of disturbing events: A nuclear bomb exploding in Australia; the gunning down of customs officers in England and an explosion killing the entire Board of Directors for Eurasia Enterprises in Hong Kong. What is the connection between these events? 007's mission is to investigate--before the friction between China and Britain escalates.

The usual assortment of dysfunctional, larger-than-life adversaries is on display: General Wong, a ruthless tyrant with a penchant for torture using a rattan cane; Guy Thackaray, the alcoholic Managing Director of Eurasia Enterprises and Li Wei Tam, the leader of a deadly Triad. Bond's companion is the beautiful, almond-eyed, long-legged Sunni Pei, met working as a "hostess" in a Triad-owned club in Hong Kong. Will she be just "another in a long line of affairs which provided a few fireworks for a while and eventually fizzled out."?

Amidst the action, Zero Minus Ten provides some interesting insight into Hong Kong during this tense period in history and there is a special edge to the sparring between Bond and the newly appointed "M"--a woman towards whom he feels both respect and fear. Bond's love of adventure and killing is evident throughout: "Blasting away the guards had actually felt good. My God, he thought. This was what he lived for. It was no wonder that he inevitably became restless and bored when he was between assignments."Zero Minus Ten is a rich adventure thriller, ranking highly in the Gardner/Benson series. --Julian Broster

About the Author:

Raymond Benson has now several James Bond novels, all Coronet paperbacks. He is also the author of The James Bond Bedside Companion, which was shortlisted for an Edgar Allan Poe Award for best biographical/critical work and is considered by 007 fans to be the definitive book on the world of James Bond. He is a director of the Ian Fleming Foundation and served as vice-president of the American James Bond 007 Fan Club for several years. Mr Benson is married, has one son and lives in the Chicago area.

About this edition

• Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 0340684488
• ISBN 13: 9780340684481
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 259